More than a third of Taiwanese suffering from asthma do not take any kind of medication, a survey conducted by the Bureau of Health Promotion showed.
The poll showed that 2.2 percent of the population -- or half a million Taiwanese -- had been diagnosed as asthmatic.
Moreover, 37.8 percent of those who were diagnosed by medical professionals as asthmatic never used any asthma medication, including inhalers, while 36 percent used medication occasionally. Only 26 percent took medication for asthma on a regular basis.
The bureau refrained from commenting on whether asthma sufferers were under-medicated, but called on patients to listen to their doctors and to avoid allergens that they might be sensitive to.
The Taiwan Association of Asthma Education, however, said that the nation's medication rate was low compared with the US and Europe, where 40 percent of asthma sufferers take regular medication.
Association president Hsu Shih-da (
"Many patients think it is enough to take a puff on the inhaler to alleviate symptoms," Hsu said, "but they do not take anti-inflammatories which help control asthma in the long term."
Asthma is an inflammatory disease triggered by allergens, Hsu said. Left untreated, the condition might deteriorate to the point where "airway remodelling" occurs and lung function is permanently impaired.
"If treatment begins before the child turns five, we can usually prevent irreversible lung damage from occurring. Through the age of 18, we still get great results with most patients," Hsu said. "In many cases they are able to go off medication."
The bureau's survey showed that dust mites were the No. 1 trigger for asthma sufferers of all ages in the country, with 41.1 percent of all asthmatics and 67 percent of kids with allergies under the age of 12 citing the tiny pest as a trigger for asthmatic episodes.
Hsu said spring mattresses were literally a hotbed, providing food and shelter for the mites.
"I sleep on a wooden bed myself," Hsu said. "Those who sleep on a spring mattress should consider using a mite-proof cover."
Taiwanese paleontologists have discovered fossil evidence that pythons up to 4m long inhabited Taiwan during the Pleistocene epoch, reporting their findings in the international scientific journal Historical Biology. National Taiwan University (NTU) Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology associate professor Tsai Cheng-hsiu (蔡政修) led the team that discovered the largest snake fossil ever found in Taiwan. The single trunk vertebra was discovered in Tainan at the Chiting Formation, dated to between 400,000 and 800,000 years ago in the Middle Pleistocene, the paper said. The area also produced Taiwan’s first avian fossil, as well as crocodile, mammoth, saber-toothed cat and rhinoceros fossils, it said. Discoveries
Taiwanese paleontologists have discovered fossil evidence that pythons up to 4m long inhabited Taiwan during the Pleistocene epoch, reporting their findings in the international scientific journal Historical Biology. National Taiwan University (NTU) Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology associate professor Tsai Cheng-hsiu (蔡政修) led the team that discovered the largest snake fossil ever found in Taiwan. A single trunk vertebra was discovered in Tainan at the Chiting Formation, dated to between 800,000 to 400,000 years ago in the Middle Pleistocene, the paper said. The area also produced Taiwan’s first avian fossil, as well as crocodile, mammoth, sabre-toothed cat and rhinoceros fossils, it said. Discoveries
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
RSS